Master of Nine Stars

Rong Taotao won, cleanly and decisively.

You could tell that, in terms of Martial Arts alone, Li Ziyi was indeed no match for Rong Taotao.

Even back when Rong Taotao’s Heaven-piercing Halberd technique was stuck at the "Three-Star: Full" level, Li Ziyi had been no match for him. Now, with Rong Taotao’s skills having advanced by leaps and bounds, his Heaven-piercing Halberd mastery had already reached "Four-Star: Mid-Tier".

However, another very real problem now confronted Rong Taotao.

His Heaven-piercing Halberd technique had a Potential Value cap of only four stars. If he didn’t find a way to gain more Potential Value soon, what awaited him was likely getting "stuck" at this level again.

’How can I get more Potential Value?’

Night fell on the dormitory building.

Rong Taotao sat meditating on his bed, absorbing ice-and-snow attribute Soul Power while lost in thought.

Successfully enrolling in the Pine Soul Soul Martial Junior Class had given him one point of Potential Value. Following that logic, would he have to wait until graduation to get another point?

As Rong Taotao mulled it over, he drowsily leaned against the wall and fell asleep.

At some point, a current of Soul Power circulated within Rong Taotao’s body. Wisps of mist drifted out from him, eventually gathering above his head.

A Cloud Dog flapped its large, cloud-shaped ears and padded its paws on Rong Taotao’s head of naturally curly hair, seemingly very satisfied with its new dog bed.

The little pup spun around once on Rong Taotao’s head before comfortably lying down and closing its small, glossy black eyes...

The night passed uneventfully. The next day, after breakfast, the trio gathered at the stone classroom. The moment they opened the door, they saw Xia Fangran, dressed in a plaid shirt, sitting inside and waiting for them.

"Grab your weapons. Let’s go." Xia Fangran stood up and gestured toward the weapon rack by the classroom door.

"Teacher, what Soul Skill are you teaching us today?" Rong Taotao asked, holding his Heaven-piercing Halberd as he watched Xia Fangran walk out of the classroom.

Xia Fangran said, "Snow Burst."

Hearing this, Rong Taotao’s eyes lit up!

He remembered back during the assessment when he had nearly flattened Xu Taiping in the snow with a swing of his halberd. Xu Taiping had cleverly used the Snow Burst Soul Skill to escape unscathed.

’Snow Burst is an essential, basic Soul Skill for Snow Realm Soul Martial Artists. I have to learn it well. The applications are endless.’

The trio silently followed Xia Fangran, once again exiting through the north gate of Hundred Corps Pass.

Whoa...

Rong Taotao couldn’t help but shiver. He shielded his eyes with one hand, peering through his fingers at the vast, white world outside.

’The visibility is terrifyingly low. What’s the difference between this and being blind?’

’Forget five meters, you can’t even see a person three meters away!’

"Use the Soul Skill: Snow Step the way I taught you yesterday. Don’t let me see any footprints," Xia Fangran said. With a flick of his hand, a Snow-made Teaching Whip assembled itself.

The trio trudged forward with difficulty, but they left no footprints behind.

Only then did Xia Fangran nod in satisfaction, his whip not having to strike any of the students.

Following behind the three, Xia Fangran kept his head down, watching the snow they trod upon for any footprints that might appear. He began to speak, "Yesterday, I taught you that the Dantian is the foundation of everything. Today, I will tell you about the second center of Soul Power in the human body: the Pleiades Acupoint in the chest."

Rong Taotao had already secretly learned this from Si Huan Nian yesterday and understood how to gather Soul Power in his chest.

But Xia Fangran’s teaching method was peculiar. With a light wave of his whip, Rong Taotao suddenly felt a wisp of Soul Power emerge at his Pleiades Acupoint.

That wisp of Soul Power clearly wasn’t his own, but it served as an excellent guide, showing him the exact location of the Pleiades Acupoint.

"Now, use the Soul Power starting point in your chest to channel Soul Power to your face. Infuse the ice-and-snow attribute Soul Power into your eyes."

As Xia Fangran spoke, he suddenly flicked his hand!

"CRACK!"

The Snow-made Teaching Whip struck Sun Xingyu directly on the back!

Xia Fangran said in a low voice, "I said, don’t let me see any footprints."

It turned out that while Sun Xingyu was focused on channeling Soul Power to her eyes, she had forgotten about the Soul Skill: Snow Step.

The human body has two starting points for Soul Power: the chest and the lower abdomen.

Sun Xingyu had only learned to use the starting point in her lower abdomen. Suddenly switching from "single-core" to "dual-core" was naturally a bit difficult to adapt to.

In comparison, Rong Taotao and Li Ziyi adapted extremely quickly. Not only were their feet leaving no prints, but their eyes were also filled with ice-and-snow attribute Soul Power, allowing them to completely merge with this vast world of raging blizzards.

’Tsk tsk...’

Rong Taotao blinked hard, overjoyed!

Although the wind was still bone-chilling and his visibility was still low, Rong Taotao could now keep his eyes open!

The intimidating, blizzard-force winds could no longer bother his eyes. From now on, Rong Taotao could truly say goodbye to his goggles.

"By the same token, you can cover your entire body with Soul Power to resist the severe cold," Xia Fangran said at the right moment. "But for you at your current stage, this technique is still a bit difficult."

"The Soul Power starting point in the chest manages the upper body and limbs, while the one in the lower abdomen manages the lower body."

"You can try, but don’t let me see any footprints."

As he spoke, Xia Fangran’s body floated up, drifting over the trio’s heads. He flew backward through the air, looking down at them. "This sudden snowstorm is an opportunity for you."

"The blizzard might blow in some interesting Soul Beasts. While I’m teaching, I will act as your Scout."

"I will survey the terrain for you, spot Soul Beasts, and provide all necessary information, but I will not personally step in to help you. I need to ensure the lesson plan stays on schedule."

"Next, let’s begin today’s lesson." As Xia Fangran spoke, he reached out and tapped his own chest.

Rong Taotao covered his nose and mouth, his gaze fervent as he looked up at the powerful Soul Martial Artist standing in mid-air. The scene was like a pilgrimage...

Xia Fangran began, "Soul Skill: Snow Burst is a turbulent gust of wind and snow that erupts from the palm."

"And as the Soul Power starting point for the upper body, the Soul Power channeled from the chest to the wrist is of utmost impor—"

Xia Fangran suddenly paused. He turned his head thoughtfully, peering into the vast snowstorm. "At your nine o’clock, there’s a Snowflake Wolf. It should be a lone wolf, separated from its pack. No companions nearby."

"It’s about thirty meters away from you, and it’s approaching."

The three youngsters’ expressions changed. A Snowflake Wolf?

’We’ve barely walked any distance from the city walls and we’ve already run into a Soul Beast?’

’Are you kidding me? During the three-day assessment in the Snowfield, we didn’t encounter a single Soul Beast. Is this snowstorm really that terrifying?’

Just as Rong Taotao was about to say something, he heard Xia Fangran continue, "Alright, let’s resume the lesson. The Soul Power channeled from the chest passes through the shoulder joint and elbow joint, finally reaching the wrist joint..."

Rong Taotao: ???

’Holy crap, there’s a Snowflake Wolf right here and you’re still giving a lecture?’

’He’s really "ensuring the lesson plan stays on schedule"!’

’By risking our lives?’

"Li Zi!" Rong Taotao called out, holding his Heaven-piercing Halberd and tilting his head to the left.

When it came to a serious mission, especially one of life and death, Li Ziyi never wasted words. His ability to execute commands was terrifyingly strong.

Rong Taotao and Li Ziyi took the lead, with Sun Xingyu gripping her long spear tightly behind them. The trio advanced in an inverted triangle formation.

In the sky, Xia Fangran floated behind the trio, still lecturing nonstop, "Snow Burst is easy to master. As long as the Soul Power channeled from the chest is sufficient and sustained, you just need to unleash it at the end. The only difficult part is when the Soul Power reaches the wrist joint..."

Rong Taotao felt like crying.

Ahead, in the vast snowstorm, was a hunting beast. And behind, in the sky, was Xia Fangran, droning on like the Tang Monk.

’Master, please stop chanting!’

’Sure, you’re "ensuring the lesson plan stays on schedule," but did you ever check if the students are even listening?’

Rong Taotao abruptly raised a hand. A surge of Soul Power gushed from his chest, passing his shoulder, elbow, wrist... Whoosh...

A small cold current was released from Rong Taotao’s wrist, but the tiny gust was immediately swallowed by the raging blizzard, failing to cause the slightest stir.

Xia Fangran’s droning, demonic voice sounded again, "For Soul Skill: Snow Burst, you need to gather a large amount of Soul Power at your wrist and make it swirl."

"But remember the key to this Soul Skill: the point of eruption must be the palm of your hand. Only when you’ve mastered this step can you be said to have truly learned Snow Burst..."

"Grrr..."

Mixed in with Xia Fangran’s words was the distinctive hunting growl of a Snowflake Wolf.

Rong Taotao and Li Ziyi shot forward at almost the exact same moment.

With the help of Soul Skill: Snow Step, the two moved through the deep snow as if on flat ground. Not only were they not hindered, but there was no risk of slipping either.

A halberd and a spear thrust toward the same spot at the same time.

"GRRR..." The Snowflake Wolf finally appeared through the layers of wind and snow. It leaped gracefully, opened its massive, blood-red maw, and lunged for Rong Taotao.

"Hah!" From behind, Sun Xingyu’s petite figure also darted forward. She swung her long spear down in a powerful chop, and her sudden shift into a servant step was incredibly fluid.

A fine "Dapeng Spreads Its Wings"! The first half of the move stirred up a storm of frost, and the second half sent snowflakes scattering in a chaotic dance.

The Snowflake Wolf whimpered as the long spear accurately struck its head.

"YAH!!!" Sun Xingyu put all her strength into pressing down with her spear, trying to buy time for her two companions.

"SHNK!"

"SHNK!" Almost simultaneously, Rong Taotao and Li Ziyi, positioned on the left and right, struck at the same time.

The spear pierced its front, the halberd pierced its back, running the meter-long Snowflake Wolf straight through.

"Whimper... hiss..." The Snowflake Wolf thrashed wildly, its crimson blood staining the snow and blooming like flowers.

The Snowflake Wolf was impaled by Rong Taotao and Li Ziyi, its head pinned down by Sun Xingyu’s long spear. But it was clearly still struggling in its death throes. Within its fang-filled maw, a swirl of wind and snow began to form.

A small, rapidly spinning ball of wind and snow, visible to the naked eye, quietly appeared.

At that very moment, inspiration flashed through Rong Taotao’s mind. He felt as if the world in his eyes had slowed down...

The rapidly spinning ball of wind and snow in the Snowflake Wolf’s mouth suddenly reminded Rong Taotao of the moment Xu Taiping had used Soul Skill: Snow Burst during the Snowfield assessment.

’Master!’

’I get it now!’

...